December 17th

On this day - 17th December 1903 - The first heavier-than-air and controlled human flight flight

The American brothers, Orville and Wilbur Wright, are credited with having the first controlled and sustained heavier-than-air flight. Their work was based on extensive "Glider" research and their airplane was basically a glider with a motor on. The first powered flight had the name "Wright Flyer I" and was built of mostly lightweight wood. A shop mechanic, Charlie Taylor, built the engine in just 6 weeks and in close cooperation with the Wright brothers. The Wright Flyer I had a weight of 274kg (605lb), a wingspan of 12.3m (40.3ft), 12 horsepower and had cost les than 1000 dollar to build. Wilbur was the first to try the plane on December 14th in an unsuccessful attempt. After repairs were the brothers ready to try again on the 17th December. Orville's first flight lasted for 12 seconds and reached a high of 37 meters, bu the brothers next flights reached 53 and 61 meters and lasted for almost a minute.

The brothers continued the work on airplanes after this first flight, and between 1905 and 1907 built the two brothers the first practical fixed-wing airplane. They also developed the "three-axis control" in 1902 (Up-down, Side-to-side and lateral), a system for steering which is still in use today.